Chained by Bonds
by CatGirl149
Summary: While strolling through the woods, Takumi's son Kiragi mysteriously becomes very ill. After Kagero and the rest of Takumi's family struggle to keep their secret under wraps, an undesirable fate soon befalls the young archer, sending Takumi into grief, denial, and no will to go on. Takumi soon uncovers a secret of his own, leading to mixed reactions and an unforgettable experience.
1. A Rare Occurence

**Author's Notes : Hey, everyone! I know some of you are waiting for an update to The Unilluminated Cave, and don't worry - I will get around to that soon since I just finished another semester of college and have the whole summer to catch up on these sorts of things (and play more Fates, too XD). This one's a story I've been writing on the side after I grew an increasing liking to Takumi and Kiragi. I showed it to a couple friends, and they suggested that I should start publishing it here, so I'm going to start uploading chapters as a way to test the waters and see how everyone enjoys it. This isn't a crossover, but there will be references to Smash here and there because of Takumi and Hinoka's families owning a second house in that universe, and considering that they would own technology that the world of Fates wouldn't really consist of (and this is also because of the fact that I didn't initially have the intention of publishing this to FanFiction, and that I had to rewrite some parts so as to avoid any confusion, so I guess you could call this a slightly-modern AU :P).  
**  
 **Anyway, I hope that this story touches your heart and that you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it. With that being said, let's begin!**

* * *

A brand new day had sprouted in the kingdom of Hoshido, and the land was bountiful with wildlife to provide further evidence of this. The five children of the Royal family were preparing to make their way towards the council meetings office in their homeland to discuss additional facilities to create, all of which were inspired by the futuristic culture of Smashville, a place which Takumi, Hinoka, and their families would visit from time to time.

In the midst of packing the necessary documents, photos, and rations to consume along the way, Takumi was met with a question from his beloved son Kiragi, who happened to be walking by as his father loaded his bag with contents.

"Hey, Dad! Where are you going? Heading on a trip or something?"

"Oh, hey, Kiragi. I'm just going along with my brother and sisters to a council meeting to provide ideas for new businesses based on Smashville. Nothing much."

Kiragi's eyes lit up as he stated, "Ooh, sounds exciting! Can I come?"

"Err… I don't think so, Son. The office is quite a ways away, meaning that there will be plenty of walking to do. Would you be okay with doing something like that?"

"Are you kidding? I practically go hiking in the woods almost every day! Walking a few miles would be no problem!"

After a heavy sigh and a smile formation, Takumi replied, "Alright, you can come. I can't say no to a sweet face like that. I'll tell my siblings you're coming along."

"Yay! Thanks, Dad!"

Accepting the warm embrace that followed his son's thanks, Takumi couldn't help but feel a little overjoyed himself. It definitely delighted him to see his flesh and blood happy and appreciative, but he was starting to sense that he was absentmindedly putting Kiragi in harm's way by fulfilling his wishes. He shook off the feeling after reassuring himself of his son's capabilities out in the wilderness, deciding to go along with his initial decision and thus enlisting Kiragi's aid in finishing up packing for the trip.

* * *

After everything was packed and Takumi gained everyone's approval for their new travel companion, the Hoshidan family set out on their journey towards the office, traversing through the woods along the way.

About an hour and a half passed, and the gang still found themselves surrounded by shrubbery. A very exhausted Kiragi looked to his father and panted, "Are we almost there, Dad? I'm just about out of breath!"

Suddenly looking up from one of the documents he was carrying, Takumi shot his son a quizzical look and inquired, "I thought you were used to walks like these. Didn't you tell me that you go hiking just about every day?"

"Yeah, but I suddenly don't feel too well. I think I might be coming down with something…" Without warning, Kiragi's face became hidden under a pale white color and the young archer quickly rushed to a nearby bush and vomited out what irritated his stomach.

"Gah!" Takumi screamed in worry. "Kiragi! What's wrong, buddy?"

In immediate response to all the commotion occurring just behind them, Takumi's siblings spun around and carried with them a set of different responses.

"Is everything okay?" Hinoka wanted to know.

"Why are you two slowing us down? We have an appointment to meet!" Ryoma barked furiously.

"Please, Ryoma, there's no need to get angry," Sakura calmly demanded. "I think there really could be something wrong with Kiragi."

"Sorry, guys. My son's not usually like this." Takumi apologized. "Do you feel any better, Kiragi?"

"I think so," the young archer replied, clenching his chest.

Sighing heavily and turning to continue down the path ahead of him, Ryoma pleaded, "Let's keep the interruptions to a minimum, shall we? I don't want anything else slowing us down."

The gray-haired archer created an angry and menacing expression at his older brother behind his back, something of which Hinoka took notice of.

"Don't mind him. He's been cranky like this all day, so don't take it personally. I, on the other hand, am really concerned for Kiragi's health."

"Thanks, Aunt Hinoka! I don't know what came over me just then. I must have eaten something my stomach didn't agree with."

"Well, hopefully you won't have to experience that ever again! We certainly don't want someone as sweet as you getting sick."

The red-headed princess patted her nephew on the head and followed her other siblings down the dirt road. Takumi put his arm around Kiragi and helped him walk the rest of the way there.

* * *

About another hour later, the group finally reached the facility in which they would discuss and propose their written plans. Just before walking inside with his family, Kiragi abruptly stopped in his path, covered his mouth with his hand, and dashed to yet another bush to vomit.

Rushing to his side, Takumi exclaimed in worry, "Kiragi! Are you okay? That's the second time you've thrown up today!"

"You can't be serious…" Ryoma sighed irritably. "I'll bet that this is all just to get attention."

"Ryoma, that appointment can wait," Hinoka stated. "And I don't think he's looking to get attention. The poor thing is as pale as a ghost!"

Sakura, with the sincerest of intentions, walked over to Kiragi and placed a hand on his forehead.

"He's running a high fever, and he could be dehydrated. I think we should head home and let him rest."

The eldest of the Royal family shook his head and muttered under his breath, " _Why did we even let him come along?"_

Takumi intervened and assured, "No, you guys go to that meeting. I'll take Kiragi home. You can take the documents I brought with me."

As he handed Hinoka the paperwork, Kiragi innocently asked his father, "Dad, weren't you eager to go to this meeting? I can stay with you if it really means a lot to you."

"No, what matters to me more is taking care of you, Son. Now, let's get you home and take care of that fever."

Takumi, accomplishing quite a feat due to Kiragi's size, lifted his son off the ground and carried him back home. His siblings looked on as he disappeared down the dirt road, with Hinoka and Sakura feeling deep concern for their nephew and Ryoma only shaking his head in dismay.

"I hope there isn't anything seriously wrong with him," Hinoka sighed compassionately.

"Never mind that. For now, let's worry about the meeting. We're already about five minutes late."

As the sisters followed their older brother into the facility and through the hallway, they began to discuss with one another about their elder's demeanor.

"Hinoka, I'm beginning to think that Ryoma doesn't like Kiragi."

"Perhaps, but he has been acting like this ever since I'd reminded him of the appointment this morning. I think he just has a thing for being punctual and on-time."

"...That could be the case, but one thing I know for sure is that I'm definitely checking in on Kiragi as soon as we're done here."

"Good idea. It's most likely going to be difficult not to think about Kiragi while we're here…"

* * *

As soon as father and son returned to the castle, Takumi carried Kiragi to his bedroom and gently placed him on his soft, cushiony mattress. Upon resting Kiragi's head on the comforting pillow, he inquired, "Can I get you anything, Son?"

"Something to drink...and maybe something to cool off my head, too."

After hearing this answer, Takumi walked through the doorway to hear and see their butler Jakob conveniently walk by.

"Excuse me, Jakob, but could we get a cup of tea and a cold washcloth, please?"

"Right away, Prince Takumi," Jakob answered obediently.

The gray-haired butler disappeared for a brief moment and returned with the requested items a few minutes later.

"As you requested, Prince Takumi."

"Thanks, Jakob. This means a lot to me."

"It was my pleasure," he replied with a smile. "Erm… May I inquire why you aren't attending today's council meeting?" he asked while Takumi placed the frigid washcloth on Kiragi's forehead and handed him the freshly-prepared glass cup of tea.

"Oh, Kiragi here got sick on our way over there, so I had to leave early and brought him back home."

"Aw, well that is some devastating news. I hope you make a quick and full recovery, Prince Kiragi."

"Thank you, Jakob. It's nice to hear that you care about me."

The butler smiled in response, adding, "Well, I shall take my leave for the time being. I've got business to attend to. Just let me know should you need anything else."

"We'll keep that in mind. Thanks again, Jakob."

As soon as Jakob exited the room, Kiragi slowly took a sip from his cup and Takumi lovingly caressed one of Kiragi's legs.

"I wish I knew why you were feeling this way, buddy. I don't like seeing you in so much pain."

"Don't worry about me, Dad. I'm sure I'll be-" Before he could finish speaking, Kiragi was suddenly overcome by a coughing fit and his face became beet red.

"Kiragi!"

"...I'm fine, Dad. I think the tea just went down the wrong pipe."

Before anything else could inflict pain on Kiragi, Takumi retrieved the tea cup from him and tucked him in underneath the covers.

"Just try to relax, Son. Maybe some sleep will do you some good."

The gray-haired archer stroked his son's soft, black hair and Kiragi's eyes began to blink sleepily, indicating that he was about to drift off into unconsciousness.

"Thanks for taking care of me, Dad. I love you."

Smiling, Takumi replied, "I love you, too, Son," and kissed Kiragi on the forehead, causing him to fall fast asleep.

Almost immediately, Takumi released a heavy yet loving sigh. He hated the sight of Kiragi suffering with all these ailments, but he did enjoy being by his side and felt as though his relationship with him was deeper than he would have ever imagined it to become. It soothed his ears to hear Kiragi's nose quietly whistle as he breathed in his sleep, and it calmed him to watch his chest gently rise and fall with each breath he took.

"Hmm… Now what am I supposed to do?" Takumi pondered. "I can't really do anything since he's asleep, but I don't want to leave his side, either."

Eyes lighting up and cogs in his head turning, Takumi reached for the cell phone in his pocket that he had received in Smashville and proceeded to browse the Internet to possibly discover what would eventually come from Kiragi's symptoms.

* * *

"Well, that went on longer than I expected," Ryoma commented about the meeting as he and his sisters traversed their way back into the corridors of the castle.

"Hey, at least it's out of the way, right? And everything on our list was approved and accounted for, so we can expect a great number of changes around here," Hinoka chimed in somewhat enthusiastically.

"Right," Sakura piped up. "And now we get to check on how that wonderful nephew of ours is doing."

The spiky-haired brother huffed and straightaway marched into the castle's kitchen to grab himself a snack before heading off to bed.

"He's at it again, Hinoka," Sakura spoke in a frightened tone.

"I guess there's really nothing we can do about it right now, so don't fret over it. Let's check on Kiragi real quick. "

Upon entering Takumi's bedroom, they were greeted by the heartwarming sight of the aforementioned brother and his son asleep in bed, huddled closely together while Takumi had his arm protectively outstretched across Kiragi's chest.

"Aw, look at that! Isn't that adorable?" Hinoka asked.

"It sure is," Sakura sighed. "I've never seen Takumi behave so lovingly before."

"Neither have I. I didn't know he had such strong parental instincts. I guess he just really loves his son."

After about another minute of watching their brother and nephew sleep, Hinoka quietly announced, "Well, I think we've seen enough. I say we call it a night and check back with them in the morning."

* * *

Two hours passed, and everyone was cozily snugged away in bed. While his family rested their tired heads on their soft pillows, Kiragi began to stir and suddenly awoke. He looked over to his father, who was still lying next to him and sound asleep.

"Oh, Dad," he whispered. "If only there was some way for me to pay you back for all you're doing for me."

All of a sudden, his ears picked up the sound of a glimmering, sparkling-like noise, which sounded similar to the sound of a wind chime.

"What was that?"

Kiragi slid out of bed and walked into the hallway. His eyes scanned the room for anything unusual until he spotted a shimmering, blue light floating a few feet ahead of him. Unsure of what it was, all he could do was gaze at the small source of illumination with a perplexed expression until it abruptly dashed towards the castle's front entrance.

Chasing after it, he called, "Hey, wait up!"

He pursued the light and followed it until he came across unfamiliar territory and found a long stream of water.

"Huh? The light brought me _here_?"

Suddenly, small waves in the stream formed a ripple and created two images, one of which was of Takumi and the other, being too distorted to show a distinguishable face, depicted a person with light, blond hair.

"What? My dad? Why am I being shown _this_? And who is this person right next to him? What's the meaning of all this?"

Stumped and realizing that he had come to a dead end, in addition to noticing that the light he had once been following had disappeared, Kiragi turned to leave and return home, but as soon as he began to go in reverse in his path, he could hear mysterious, threatening voices shout, "Halt! Intruder!"

"W-What?! Are they referring to _me_? I'm no intruder!" Kiragi stuttered, panicking. "This is bad… I knew I shouldn't have followed that light. I've gotta bail!"

Kiragi's fight or flight response prompted him to immediately make a quick getaway from the ambiguous owners of the voices, but he was soon surrounded and cornered from every angle.

" _Shoot! I picked a bad time to go out without my bow and arrow! What am I going to do?!"_ were the thoughts that raced through Kiragi's mind as he stood defenseless.

"Stop right where you are, Hoshidan!" one of the soldiers called. "You've stepped onto Nohrian territory!"

"Nohr?! Sorry, but I never meant to cross into your kingdom!"

The soldier huffed, "A likely story…"

"No, I'm honest! I wasn't watching where I was going and I ended up here! Now, please let me go home!"

Despite sensing his desperation, the Nohrian soldier replied, "Sorry, we're just following orders. We need to be sure that you intend no harm to us."

"But, I don't even have a weapon! How could I-"

Having heard enough, another one of the soldiers tossed a smoke bomb right in front of the youthful archer. Before he had time to react, the small bomb burst and released a puff of visible gas which he inadvertently captured a whiff of through his nose, causing him to suddenly fall unconscious.

Approaching the gathering of Nohrian troops, a young man and his sister riding a horse brought up the question, "So, what is it _this_ time, guys? Another Hoshidan that was foolish enough to cross the border?"

"It appears so, Prince Leo, but _this_ one looks much younger than what we're used to seeing. He could be somebody you might know."

Dismounting his horse, the second-youngest of the Nohrian Royal family walked up to investigate the child of the opposing kingdom.

Placing a hand on his chin, Leo commented, "Hmm… He looks so familiar; it's as if I've seen him somewhere before."

As the cogs inside Leo's mind turned, his younger sister Elise dismounted his horse and unexpectedly sprang up in realization once she was at his side.

"Brother! Don't you know this is?"

"Do you mean to tell me that you recognize him?"

"Yes, that's Takumi's son!"

Dumbfounded, Leo placed his face in his hand and responded, "Yes, of course! Takumi's son! I _thought_ I recognized him."

"What are we going to do with him? It would be wrong to imprison him, since it appears that he had stumbled into our kingdom unintentionally."

"Hmm… You're right, Elise. I guess the logical thing to do would be to return him home."

Leo lifted his rival's son off the ground and, along with his sister, began the lengthy journey to reunite Kiragi with his family.


	2. The Domino Effect

As soon as the early morning sun rose, Takumi awoke and turned to wish Kiragi a good morning, but to his dismay, his son was not at his side.

"What the-? Where the heck is Kiragi?!" he screamed in panic. Takumi immediately sprinted into the hallway, hoping that he would see his beloved flesh and blood nearby. "Kiragi! Where have you disappeared to?!"

Hearing the Prince's screams of concern, Jakob quickly and promptly changed into his formal attire and brought his offering of assistance at the ready.

"You're up quite early, Prince Takumi. What seems to be the problem?"

"Kiragi has disappeared! When I woke up, he wasn't there at my bedside!"

"Goodness gracious! Should I be genuinely concerned, or is this some sort of game you two are playing?"

"Oh, no. This is no game. If he were to randomly run off like that, he would at least notify me before doing so. Considering that he became ill yesterday and I had my arm around him while we slept last night, it's a mystery as to why he'd let himself get lost…"

"Oh, dear. That IS quite a mystery." Eyes darting around the room for any signs of the younger prince, Jakob hesitantly ushered, "Let's not panic, now. Hopefully he didn't wander too far off the castle grounds."

While the two searched for the archer within all the nooks and crannies of the royal family's establishment, the commotion they were causing caught the attention of Hinoka, who stood sleepy-eyed in the doorway of her bedroom asking, "What are you two doing up so early?"

"Sorry if we woke you, Hinoka," her brother apologized, "but Kiragi has disappeared! We don't even know where he might have run off to…"

Managing to break the mold in the mood of their conversation, a knock on the front door was unexpectedly and abruptly made, and the trio exchanged glances as if the knock provider had the answer to their dilemma. Upon prying open the door, they were greeted by a handful of unexpected guests: Elise, who stood displayed as apologetic, and Leo, who appeared with Kiragi hung over his shoulder.

"Okay, I know it looks like there's been a bit of wrongdoing here," Leo piped up, "but I can assure you that neither I nor our troops have inflicted any harm to your son."

Takumi stood with a look of bafflement and concern. Just HOWdid Kiragi end up in Nohrian clutches and return unharmed?

"H-How? ...I'm speechless."

With a grin, Elise chimed in, "It's okay. We understand! It's not unusual for children to become so tempted to wander off where they shouldn't be!"

"Erm… I'm not quite following. Could someone please clarify what's going on?" Jakob announced.

"I'll put it simply-" Leo stated, "we found Kiragi on our side of the border and decided to return him here."

"Hmm… That doesn't quite answer my question. How did he wind up in Nohr, and what made you decide against harming him? Not that I'm complaining or anything…" Takumi inquired.

"Unfortunately, we're not sure about the former, but as for the latter...we knew that his intrusion was not intended. Perhaps he was lead by some other force."

"He was lead by a mysterious force? That could explain why he disappeared last night."

Not understanding Takumi's previous statement, Leo handed Kiragi back into his possession and began to turn away.

"I guess we'll see you around."

"No, wait."

Leo and Elise stopped dead in their tracks.

"You two don't have to leave so soon. Since you brought my son back, I want to return the favor, so why don't you stay a while, and we could work something out."

Leo was beginning to experience the thought of his rival attempting to make amends and was about to take up on his offer, but then he remembered his family ties back in Nohr. "Gee, that sounds rather nice, Takumi, but I don't think that Xander or my father would appreciate us being away from home for so long."

Elise playfully elbowed him and happily chimed in, "C'mon, Leo! I'm sure they wouldn't mind if we stayed for just a little while!"

"Well, alright…" Leo said, loosening his shoulders. He turned back around to face Takumi and sighed, "Sure, we'll take up on your offer."

* * *

Moments later, the gang gathered together in the lounging area with a cup of coffee in their hands and a roaring blaze in the fire place to warm up the room. Takumi, his former rival and Leo's sister were discussing various things about Smashville and the upcoming futuristic facilities that would soon be constructed in Hoshido, while Hinoka sat by Kiragi in his bedroom awaiting his retrieval of consciousness.

After a few moments, Kiragi began to stir and became confused and frightened as soon as he was conscious and wide awake.

"W-What? How did I end up back in bed?" He turned his head and raised a befuddled brow when he noticed Hinoka sitting by him. "What are _you_ doing here, Aunt Hinoka? What happened to me?"

Stroking his hair, the red-head answered, "Well, from whatI can gather, it seems like you passed out somewhere in Nohr and Leo was forgiving enough to return you home. I don't know the rest of the story, but I'm at least glad you made it back safe and sound!"

"L- _Leo_ brought me home?"

"Yup. I guess he isn't such a bad guy after all, is he? ...He's in the living room with your father right now, if you want to say hi to him."

Taking a liking to Hinoka's idea, Kiragi took the liberty of making himself presentable and walked towards the living room, where he caught Takumi and his new friends in the middle of discussing what living in Smashville was like.

"We're used to a more casual way of life over there," Takumi explained. "There's a lot of technology to make things convenient, and we don't usually dress so formally while we're there."

"Huh, sounds interesting," Leo answered, nodding. "You'll have to invite us there sometime." Suddenly, the Prince of Nohr experienced the sensation of another's presence entering the room. "Hmm? Oh, hey, Kiragi! I see you finally woke up."

"What do you need, Son?" Takumi asked with a smile, relieved to see Kiragi alive and well.

"I hope I'm not interrupting, but could I borrow Leo for a minute?"

Slightly startled and caught off guard by his son's question, Takumi replied, "Um… Sure, Son. Go ahead."

So the Prince of Nohr followed the young archer into the hallway and upon coming to a stop, he immediately inquired, "Okay, kid, what did you want from me?"

"Well, I was just recently told that it was _you_ who brought me back to my family after I wandered away from home. Is that true?"

"Yeah, that's right. After my troops and I found you, I figured it would be unjust to imprison you because I knew you hadn't come into Nohr intentionally. I just couldn't have my soldiers punish someone so innocent."

"Wow, really? Thanks, Leo! Who knows what could've happened if you hadn't been there to make that decision!"

"Heh. Don't sweat it, kid," Leo said with a smile.

"Um… I also wanted to give you this as thanks," Kiragi mentioned, reaching into his pocket.

"Oh, there's no need to go out of your way to give me something in return. I was only doing what had to be done."

"No, I insist," Kiragi demanded, pulling out a small, red machine. Handing Leo the little device, he added, "Here, I want you to have this."

With a face that looked both perplexed and astonished, Leo asked, "What is it?"

"It's a Nintendo 3DS. It's a gaming handheld from Smashville that allows you to play video games in a way that looks like they pop out of the screen. I think it's rather fun, and I thought you might get some enjoyment out of it. I also have a few games to go with it that I want to give you."

"N-No. You couldn't possibly want to part with something like this," Leo declined, almost appearing resistant.

"Like I said before… I insist. It wouldn't feel right to go on without repaying you for doing a kindness."

Realizing that Kiragi was reluctant to change his mind, Leo gave a whole-hearted smile and sighed, "Well, that's very generous of you, Kiragi. Thank you very much. I will treasure it forever." He bent over and enwrapped Kiragi in a warm embrace, which came as a shock to his young friend. The Nohrian prince then returned to the living room to announce his farewells. "Looks like it's about time for Elise and I to take our leave, Takumi. Make sure to take good care of that son of yours; he's a really sweet, well-mannered kid."

"Will do. Thanks for stopping by, guys!"

As soon as the Nohrians left the household, Kiragi returned from the hallway and exhaled, "Darn, I wish they could've stayed longer."

"I'm sure we'll see them again someday, Son." After a brief pause, Takumi inquired, "Say… Are you hungry, Kiragi? I realized you didn't eat much after feeling nauseous yesterday."

Patting his tummy, Kiragi laughed, "Yeah, I suppose I _have_ worked up an appetite since then. What are we having?"

* * *

A few hours later, Takumi and Kiragi reunited with the woman of their family, Kagero, in their place of residence in the modernized world of Smashville. As opposed to wondering what his family would be consuming for lunch, Kiragi was given the choice by his father to determine what they would fill their bellies with, but soon after his parents began to chow down, Kiragi instead solemnly stared down at his plate, sighing heavily several times and playing with his food with a fork.

After hearing yet another heavy exhale, Takumi sympathetically questioned, "What's bothering you, Kiragi? Why haven't you touched your food?"

Without looking at him, the youthful archer suggested, "I'm just not hungry, I guess."

"Huh? Earlier, you said you worked up an appetite! What happened to you since then?"

"I don't know. I'm just not feeling like myself." Kiragi slightly shoved his plate away and prepared to leave the dining table. "If you'll excuse me…"

Mother and father watched as their son disappeared from the dining room and into the hallway, then proceeded to glance at each other as if they were telepathically expressing concern and asking one another how to go about improving their child's mood.

"What do you think is wrong with him?" Kagero asked her husband.

"No idea. He wasn't like this back in Hoshido. I sure hope he's not getting sick again…"

"What do you propose we should do? What kind of illness did he have back home?"

"Well, he vomited a few times and grew a fever, but I never learned the cause of that… I don't know how to go about helping him, either."

Both parents glanced down at their plates and then back at one another, subconsciously deciding that their main priority at that very moment was to care for their son, rather than to finish their meals. They traversed into the hallway to find Kiragi fast asleep in their own bed.

"He went right back to sleep? What's he doing in _here_?"

"He would probably feel better sleeping with us tonight, as opposed to being all alone in his room," Kagero suggested.

"Hmm… I guess I can understand why." Takumi walked over his bed and sat by Kiragi, carefully and lovingly rubbing his backside. "The poor thing's been through so much these past couple of days; throwing up twice during our trip, catching a fever, somehow getting lost and ending up in Nohr…"

"What?! How did he return from Nohr unscathed?"

"Well, Leo decided against harming him and brought him back home, then he and Elise stayed at our place for a while and Kiragi said a few words to him. I'm not sure what the two of them discussed or what happened between them, but I think they might have had actually become friends!"

"Hmm… Interesting. It's good that he still continues to make friends, but what are we going to do about his health?"

"I-I don't know, Kagero. I really don't. I don't know what's wrong with him, and I'm afraid of taking him to see a doctor because of the possibility of them delivering bad news and I want to be able to cure Kiragi all on my own."

"Well, doctors are trained for that kind of thing, you numbskull! They would be more capable of healing Kiragi than you EVER would be!"

"Oh, so you're going to start with the name-calling now, aren't you?" Takumi accused furiously, following his irritated wife out of their bedroom.

Kagero snapped at him, retorting, "From what I've seen, it seems like you enjoy seeing him suffer! I've never seen a man quite as stubborn as you."

"What?! Where the heck is _this_ coming from? I really do have the best intentions, but I just feel so obligated to stay by his side that-"

"That what? I'm sure he would much appreciate it if you took him to a doctor to get his symptoms checked out!"

Takumi growled, " Grr… You're driving me insane, woman!"

Before either of them could lash out at the other once more, they could suddenly hear the faint sound of sniffling and muffled whimpers. Without hesitation, the two of them immediately dashed back into their sleeping quarters to find Kiragi with his face buried in a pillow with his body in a very tense position.

"Kiragi… what's the matter, buddy?" Takumi asked sympathetically.

"Dad," Kiragi sniffed, "I'm the reason you and Mom are fighting, aren't I?"

Mother and father looked to each other and heavily sighed in unison. They knew they shouldn't have been setting a bad example for their son by arguing over their problems.

"Look, Kiragi, we're sorry," his father apologized as Kagero joined them on the bed and as he attempted to encourage Kiragi to lift his head up from the soft cushion. "None of this is your fault, okay? We didn't mean to get angry like that."

Kagero added, "Yeah, it's just that the two of us experience so much throughout the day, like work, for example. My co-workers drive me insane every time I see them! One time, they just carelessly started eating potato chips and watched videos on their cell phones as the manager walked by, and they weren't even on their break!"

After hearing a quick chuckle from his son, Takumi continued on, "We don't know all that you're going through or what emotions you're dealing with, but we'll do everything we can to make it up to you and make you feel better, alright?"

Kiragi sniffed one final time and stared longingly into his parents' eyes. Smiling in response, he replied, "Alright, I understand. Thanks for being here for me, Mom and Dad!"

The family joined together in a loving embrace as Kiragi became playfully assaulted with kisses from his parents and Takumi subconsciously made a vow to uphold the promise he had just delivered to his flesh and blood.


End file.
